Deadly Truths: Kiss Her Goodbye #3

by Royce, Rebecca

  Derrick tugged on my hair. “Maybe we can buy our way out.”

  “Is that possible?” Trying to navigate the Alliance was exhausting. “I thought it was a ’til death do us part kind of a thing.”

  Warden blinked. “Is someone getting married?” He pointed at me. “You can’t marry Derrick. Not until after you marry me.”

  I grinned. “Take a nap, Warden.” I set my plate fully on the table and patted my lap. “Head here.”

  Derrick lifted his lids. “Why does she have to marry me after you? I can go first if I want to. In fact, I’m going to. Evs, you have to marry me before you marry Warden.”

  This was the most ridiculous conversation ever, made even stranger by the fact Derrick did not seem to be kidding. I waited for him to wink, and he didn’t. Warden settled in my lap and I closed his computer.

  I ran my hands through his hair, while I thought about things. “How would that even work, Derrick? We’ve never really considered any of this, never figured out how it would play out. You guys wanted me to bounce around following you, and I told you that was not happening. How it might happen has never been sorted out.”

  He tilted his head. “How do you want it to work?”

  “I want to be with all of you. I should just say that. I know it makes me selfish. Maybe everyone is good with that in the short term, maybe you’re okay with it long term. With the exception of Trace who is injured too much right now, you’ve all promised to be loyal to each other. I want all of you, and I want Marcus to leave us alone.” I waved my hand to indicate the room. “Do we all stay here in this gorgeous home in paradise Kade found and just play house like it’s not totally off kilter that we’re doing this?”

  Warden sighed. “It’s not so off kilter. People have multiple loves all the time. And I don’t give a shit what anyone thinks. I’ll stay here. Where you are is where I am. When I’m not all drugged up, I can work anywhere.”

  Was it that easy? Trace and Judson both had jobs that would make that tricky. There was a time I had wanted a husband and children. A big family. It came from being an only child left mostly alone in the world after my mother died. I was certainly not cut out to be anyone’s mother anymore. I’d just shoved a knife into a woman’s eye socket and watched her bleed to death.

  “What happens to the Alliance after we end Marcus?”

  Derrick shook his head. “The Alliance can go fuck itself.”

  That wasn’t really an answer. “Derrick, there is always going to be an Alliance, right? Cut off the head, another one grows back. Does this ever end or are we locked up forever in hiding?”

  “You’re one day into the hiding, don’t get stir crazy yet.” Warden looked up at me with slitted eyes. “There has been a lot of bloodshed lately. But that wasn’t always the case. When our grandfathers were Alliance members, there was none. Alliance isn’t supposed to hurt Alliance. I have to believe we can get back from this and return to that. People raised families and benefited from our power structure. My grandfather never had to go into hiding.”

  I stroked his hair. “This from the man with his head in my lap because he got shot weeks ago and is only going to be okay because of surgery not available to the general public? You think we can do without bloodshed?”

  Warden adored me with his eyes. “Maybe I’m just taking advantage of having been hurt to stick my head in your lap and let you baby me.”

  Derrick laughed, it was a low sound before he stretched out, putting his head on my shoulder. “It’s nice to sit here with you just like this.”

  It was really nice. I turned my head to kiss the top of his hair. Somehow, Derrick always managed to look fantastically put together and smell like sandalwood scented shampoo. I was in a constant state of disarray. I ran my hands through Warden’s hair. “I really like it, too.”

  “To answer your question more seriously,” Warden sighed. “Yes, I think we can get back to it. Most of us just want to live lives of quiet power. The last Council destroyed things, but it’s not too late to fix it. Or blow the whole thing up and start over from a better position. I actually believe. And for the other stuff you were worrying about? How this works? Look, it’s working. It would be if Judson, Trace, and Kade were running around here now, too.”

  He was right except in the small details. “Judson has a practice in Massachusetts. Trace has a job in Virginia.”

  “Neither of them is currently there.” Derrick squirmed, rubbing his forehead against my shoulder. Was he planning on just going to sleep? I kind of loved that. Oh boy, I really was still squishy inside. I kind of thought I’d hardened, but it turned out I still had the part of me that wanted to give affection and love easily. Was I going to survive this if I continued to be so soft? Of course, I’d also shoved a knife through someone’s eye without giving it much of a second thought. Maybe I was doomed to live in a constant dichotomy of personality issues.

  Derrick continued. “Trust them to know what they can do with their jobs and what they can handle. I don’t know how much Judson even wants to practice anymore, and for Trace, it was always a cover as much as a calling.”

  Warden shifted slightly. He closed his eyes. “We’re all in love with you. We spent too much time apart. I…”

  He never finished what he was saying. Mid-word sentence he simply nodded off in my lap. Derrick was silent, his breathing eventually deepening. I guessed they both needed naps and they wanted them lying on me. I continued to stroke my hands through Warden’s hair. It was soothing to me. He’d shown up in my bar, and he’d needed me. It really had been that easy to get me back into this mess.

  I picked up my phone, shooting a text to Judson and Kade. Someone had put everyone’s numbers back on my phone. I’d purchased it to be a throwaway device, but with all the apps on it now—that had to be because of Kade—it looked like I was keeping it for the foreseeable future. I downloaded a book app and picked up a mystery I’d been wanting to try. The Wi-Fi in here was fast. That had to be from Kade. He really was amazing. I wondered if he even knew how much better he made our lives.

  I was going to tell him. While I was in this soft, gooey emotional zone everyone might as well benefit from my feeling this way. It was bound to be shut off any second when either someone pissed me off or the world interfered.

  Thank you for this beautiful house and making it so comfortable and easy to be in already. I sent it to him.

  A text came immediately back. I love you, too. You were out last night. I don’t think you moved. I checked a couple of times to make sure you were breathing.

  I grinned. Warden made a small sound that was a sigh, and I realized I’d stopped petting him with my other hand. I went back to it, and he settled. I guessed he liked that. Derrick breathed evenly, his hand on my hip. I wasn’t sure how he could possibly be comfortable.

  Thanks for that. Guess I needed the sleep. Is Trace okay?

  He responded fast. Yes, hold on. I’ll have Judson text you. He’s staring at a soap opera on a television like he’s never seen something so awful before. It’s actually kind of funny.

  A few seconds passed and Judson’s number popped up. Hey, Everly. Texting Kade and not me? Should I be insulted?

  I chewed on my lip. I always think of you as busy.

  Not currently. Just waiting. Trace is going to be fine. They knocked him out to take an exploratory laparoscopic look inside the wound area, but the general consensus from the trauma surgeon is he seems fine. His fever broke this morning, and he is cranky as hell.

  Warden shifted again. When does W get more pain meds?

  Three hours. I should be back, but if I’m not, they’re in the room I put him and Trace in. Next to his bed. You sleep okay?

  A second text came right in from Kade. Don’t just text with him. Now I’m jealous. Text with both of us.

  I put them into a group text. How is it where you are? Any place you could go get lunch?

  It was Judson who answered. That’s a good idea. Let’s go get lunch, Kade.
/>
  I grinned. They were sitting next to each other and they were texting. I’ve got Derrick and Warden both asleep on me. I just ate lunch, and I guess I’m going to read until one of them wakes up. I hate to bother either of them.

  Really? It was Kade who answered. Lucky assholes.

  Judson’s came in fast. I call the next nap on Everly.

  I’d been really alone for months. That had been my choice and what I’d thought I’d needed. Hell, maybe I actually had. How would I know? I’d told them I needed to be alone and even if they hadn’t really given it to me, until Warden walked into my bar I’d felt entirely on my own. Now here I was, with men I should probably have never known, asleep on me, and sending me text messages that made me smile.

  Life was really bizarre sometimes.

  No time for lunch. They came to get us. Trace is up. Pissed off and up. Grump Trace is no fun. Just in case you wanted to be warned about who we are bringing home. He makes Warden seem easy going when he’s injured.

  I looked down at Warden. He was completely easy going right now. Adorably, so. I hadn’t thought he was handsome when I’d first seen him. His face was too intense, almost too masculine, when I’d first laid eyes on it. But now? He was beautiful. There would never be a time I wasn’t attracted to him or think he was among the handsomest people on Earth.

  I let go of his hair to run my finger down the slight of his nose. It was slightly too big to be fashionable. Then again, there was little about me that would land me on a fashion magazine. Even injured, Warden had on perfect clothes that were likely tailored to him. I didn’t even know how he’d gotten them, considering he’d had on the pilot’s clothes the last time I saw him. Maybe he kept a bag of expensive clothing at Judson’s house.

  Or maybe he was wearing Judson’s, which should have been slightly too tight on him except that Warden had clearly lost weight. I was way overthinking this.

  He rubbed against my hand in his sleep. Warden was desperate for touch. I knew that feeling well. I was starved for it, too. Derrick shifted, and I nuzzled against his hair. That’s what this was about. The sex with each of them was astronomically good, but it wasn’t enough. At the end of the day we were humans and we needed to touch each other in gentle ways that didn’t end up with our clothes off.

  We were fucked up humans, but it didn’t alter our human status.

  I went back to my phone. I didn’t have any new messages from Judson or Kade. They must have been getting Trace ready to come back. I returned to my book. The plot was interesting. A retired detective dragged back to work to solve the case he never did. It was a trope in mystery, but one I enjoyed nonetheless.

  I wasn’t sure how much time passed, but soon the door to the house opened. Kade, Judson, and Trace’s voices boomed into the room. They were arguing, that much was clear.

  “If she’s not here and this is just a fucked up way to get me to cooperate with the two of you, I am going to fucking kill you,” Trace shouted.

  Judson laughed. “Go take a look.”

  I kissed Derrick’s head. “Time to wake up. Think I have to move.”

  He grunted and opened his eyes. “I’ll go see if they need any help.”

  Derrick stretched his arms over his head, doing that thing that let me see his abs when his shirt rode up. I’d had him half naked in my bed that morning but I’d never get enough of looking at him. I grinned. I hated to disturb Warden so I scooted right, which let me lay his head down on the couch. He sucked in a long breath but didn’t wake up. Healing must have been exhausting.

  I made my way toward the hall, almost colliding with Trace when I did. He was wrapped up in bandages, his eyes were red and wounded looking, and for just a second as we stared at each other, and then true joy blossomed in his gaze.

  If I’d ever wondered if he loved me, and I had, I didn’t anymore.

  I cupped the side of his face. “If you ever do that to me again, get shot and end up in some weird woman’s house held captive for money, I’ll fucking kill you myself.”

  He grinned. “I missed you, too. Congratulations on the college degree. I… I got you something.”

  “Damn it,” Judson shouted from the hallway.

  “Thank you, Trace.”

  10

  Trace swallowed his pills using a bottle of water I’d handed him. Warden was up and we all sat around the kitchen table—the first time the six of us were together since I’d stormed out of the hotel room.

  “It was very sudden but death always is, right?” He shook his head. “One second James was chatting about his latest conquest, the next he was dead. I hit the ground just as the bullet struck me right in the side. If I hadn’t… I’d be dead on his floor, too.”

  Derrick nodded. He twisted his mouth up like he was chewing something and then stopped. “And you saw nothing? Not even a red dot or something like that as you were targeted?”

  Trace shook his head. “No, it was only seeing James go down that made me hit the floor.”

  “Okay.” Derrick rose. “I’m going to go for a few days.”

  “What?” I grabbed his arm. “Why? Where are you going?”

  He smiled at me in the same way he had after he’d made me come on the bed that morning. My cheeks immediately heated up. Was my grabbing his arm somehow akin to him to his getting me to orgasm with his tongue? I tried to drop my hand, but he grabbed it, linking our fingers together.

  “I’ll be back in three days tops. I need to know who the shooter is. There are contacts I have that Kade will not be able to find on the dark web. Retired people who still know things. They won’t be on any websites. I’ll be safe.” He looked around the table. “And she better be when I get back. Kade, this is on you. Judson’s got his hands full with these two. If she’s hurt when I get back, I’m going to be pissed.”

  Kade nodded. “We’re on the same page over this now, Derrick. We all took the oath. Well, Trace hasn’t, but presumably he will.”

  Trace shook his head. “What oath?”

  I squeezed his hand. “We can get into that later.”

  “All right.” Trace kissed me before he spoke to Derrick. “See you in three days or less. I’ll have information.”

  “Derrick.” I rose and crossed to him to hug him against me. “Trace and Warden have both been shot. You threatened Marcus and they did nothing to you. I got a mediocre warning. Judson hasn’t been messed with. We don’t know if Trace was the target or if James Robert was. Why? Why Warden and Trace?”

  He shook his head. “When we know who, we can find out why. I love you. See you soon, Evs.”

  I sat again as he left. Everyone was quiet, maybe they were considering what I’d said, but I thought that Warden and Trace were probably pretty preoccupied with how badly they felt.

  Trace rubbed his eyes. “Feeling like I missed something. Derrick just came out with that pretty openly. I love you, too, by the way. But are we all just saying it?”

  Kade smirked. “We are. I think she loves you, too. She put a knife through the eye of the woman who was holding you hostage.”

  I waved my hand. I really didn’t want to get into that right now. “Judson, I’m guessing you’re exhausted. Go take a nap while these guys are fine. I’ll sit with them. Kade, can you get a list of everywhere Marcus has ever lived or if he visits some place over and over?”

  He nodded. “On it.”

  Warden winced. “I’m thinking I’m not good for anything right now. My pain pill has worn off.”

  “It hasn’t.” Judson got up. “Not for another hour. Don’t let him take it early, Everly. You saw yourself he has no restraint when it comes to this stuff. How much did you drink on the pain pills in Everly’s bar?”

  Warden rolled his eyes. “You deal with that pain over three weeks on the run and see if you make good decisions.”

  “I really missed a bunch of shit getting shot, didn’t I?” Trace smiled.

  He was in one of Jud’s green shirts. Trace was always the man in black. He was pr
ofoundly colorblind and couldn’t differentiate most colors from one another. It was easier for him to simply wear black all of the time. He looked funny in color. I didn’t like it.

  “We need televisions. Is it safe for me to go buy us some stuff? You guys went out today. Presumably I can? I’m not at risk, anyway. They don’t seem to give a shit about me.”

  Kade nodded. “It’s fine, but tell me what you want and I’ll order it.”

  “This is going to sound strange but I’d like to get Warden and Trace clothes that are more them.”

  Trace tugged at his shirt. “What color is it?”

  “Green.” I stroked my hand down his arm. “I miss you in black.”

  “Want to see what I got you? Kade can pull up a picture on the Internet. I was thinking if you were about to go off the grid, so to speak, that maybe the thing to do was to put you on a yacht where I’d know you were safe. Presumably, Kade had a similar idea.”

  Judson’s mouth fell open. “I thought of that. Today. A yacht. I was going to buy her a yacht. You bought her one already? Fuck me.”

  Dr. Smythe stormed off to the kitchen.

  “You bought me a boat? I don’t know how to captain a boat. I mean, thank you. But other than the little fishing boats we tooled around on lakes and rivers back home, I wouldn’t have the slightest idea how to do that. I’d need to take a class.”

  Kade grinned. “I think the point here was that Trace was going to captain that boat for you.”

  Trace nodded. “Yep. That’s what I was going to do.”

  I scooted my chair closer to him. “Can you guys give us a minute?”

  Kade nodded. “I’m going to order televisions. That was a good call. Anything else you want? Clothes for Trace and Warden. What else?”

  Guilt washed through me. “Kade, you just bought me this house. Don’t spend any more money. I have an account. Use that money.”